Do you have photographs and memories to share?

Have an interest in, or a history with, St. George's Home for Boys? Please feel free to use this posting as a means of making contact.

• 1 Mike Dollmann | March 2, 2007 at 5:43 am

  Hi Blane.

  I am an St Georges Home “old boy” and spent two years there from 1966 to 1967 and prior to that I spent two years 1964 to 1965 at the old Stanger High school Hostel. From your site it would appear that you also had some connection to that school.

  Should you wish to contact me, please feel free to do so on 082 455 8790 or by e-mail miked@barloworld.com.

  Regards

  Mike

• 2. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | October 24, 2007 at 7:44 pm

  Hi Blane
  Don’t know if you remember me but at the tiime you were in Crawford I was in Simpson where my father was housemaster. I remember your family well. Seeing the names you have listed has really called back the past as I remember most of those boys and may even have some pics of some of them.
  Have just returned from a holiday in the UK where I saw one of the Project Trust volunteers, Steve Towse, and he has been in touch with Father Clayton as he lives quite near Steve. Steve is also in touch with Nick Young who was known as ‘Mr Plod’ as he was a policeman in the UK before, and after, coming to St Georges.
  Feel free to email me.
  Regards
  Wendy

• 3. Blane | October 24, 2007 at 8:48 pm

  Wendy! My god how lovely to hear from you. Yes, I remember you well despite the very short time we were together at St. George’s as “Housemaster’s kids.” Can you share contact information for Fr. Clayton and others?

  
  

• 4. Anon | October 29, 2007 at 9:48 am

  My apologies for prefering to remain anonymous. My thanks to Blane for making this forum possible. I met both Blane and Wendy, as well as their parents, albeit briefly, in St Georges. Both were Housemaster’s kids and I doubt either would remember me had I divulged my identity.

  Nevertheless, is it not curious that it took a ‘Housemaster’s kid’ finally to reveal the existence of an institution, near the heart of Johannesburg, that ‘cared’ for boys for more than 70 years? I can anwer that question: having spent the whole of the 1960’s there I believe I am well qualified. Even before I arrived from JCH (those who have ears, let them hear) St Georges posessed a fearful reputation for discipline. And it was well deserved. Gone was the gentle ambience and true caring of JCH and in its place we found a harsh, violent reality that till shocks me to this day, more than 40 years later. It was a violence inflicted on boys by ‘well-meaning’ housemasters (two of whom are listed in your notable names above). They split the skin on our buttocks using thin bamboo canes to the extent that we often bled. On one occasion, in an attempt to protect myself from a lashing, my wrist was split open.

  And I learnt my lesson well. Soon I too would inflict violence, using my fists, on the smaller boys around me and in turn was beaten up by those older than I. And this violence came from the very top, filtering its way down like a fine mist that permeated everything.

  I wish to make it clear that Father Richardson was the most gentle of all the masters. On one occasion I had to report to him for a caning (I was caned too by the headmasters of both schools I also attended: Wychwood Primary and Malvern High) and the one I received from Father Richardson was laughable. He was so nervous that he was almost in tears. When he delivered his ‘tap’ I laughed in his face. I was 12 at the time. I was not being rude: I simply understood that this man was gentle and kind; unlike Thwackem, Whackem, Brainem and Cainem, the regular masters who made their canes sing as they weilded them, whistling through the air and landing with a loud THWACK!! on vulnerable buttocks. I was 9 years old when this brutality began. Try this some time: stand in a Q outside a housemaster’s flat waiting your turn for a caning; hear the boy currently being punished beg for mercy; hear the cane whistle and land; hear the door open and the master beckons you forward; see the previous boy exit with tear-streaked face clutching his bum. Such sport. I was 9 years old when this brutality began. I would be 16 when it ended. By then they thought, perhaps, that such big boys might strike back and so withheld their punishment. And in fact some big boys did but thats another story.

  The violence was one reason why nobody who has been in St Georges wants to reveal that he has. There is another that is much more profound: shame. It is a deep unfounded shame that we feel as a result of being discarded. When I left the home, I revealed to very few that I was an Old Boy. My children, when they had grown up, were asked if their father ever spoke of his school years. Never, they replied. Because I was so ashamed. Now I am much older and understand that it was no fault of mine that I came from parents who had a disastrous relationship and were incapable of caring for any child, let alone me. But the shame still persists and I blush to write these words.

  And yet….and yet there was so much to admire in St Georges. Not just admire. To love. I unashamedly admit I loved the place, despite what I already have said. I never went hungry and was clothed for all occasions. I made very close friends and everything was provided. And as for sports, well, we had our choice of any and all. Name it and we played it.

  But I am still so deeply ashamed. But those are my feelings on the matter of St Georges and I am sure other Old Boys may beg to differ. I don’t mind. Say whatever you want.

  
  

• 5. Blane | October 29, 2007 at 10:49 pm

  Thank you for this response. Fear and shame are powerful motivators, and you have stirred my memories. It would be unfair to hundreds of “Old Boys” if I were to try and paint a rosy picture of life at St. George’s as I knew it — or, for that matter, any picture at all. Yours is an authentic voice. I was only there for two short years. I realize, too, that I am writing from a position of privilege; as a “Housemaster’s kid” I was given preferential treatment at every turn. But I do want to share a little of my witness to corporal punishment while I was there.

  Like you, I grew up in colonial Africa where corporal punishment was a common practice in schools. The threat of “six of the best” may have kept me in line, but I have since learned that fear is a short-term motivator. I often witnessed lines of boys waiting for their canings outside my father’s study and elsewhere in other houses. I, too, remember hearing the distraught cries of boys begging for mercy behind a closed door and the sound of a thin cane used in anger.

  St. George’s was a strange blend of pious Anglicanism and strict, militaristic discipline. (I recently visited a former House Master at his home in Cape Town who referred to his disdain at the “frog marching” that took place on that black slate parade ground between the chapel and the refectory.)

  I think it’s important to acknowledge that St. George’s permitted an environment in which such abuse could take place. Such an acknowledgment should be just that – a recognition that this happened. Hundreds of boys were shaped in this particular culture; many look back on those days with some fondness. (And here is the curious tension you share about when you survey your seven-year experience: the shame of being a “discarded” child, the violence of abusive corporal punishment and the love for this place where you were fed and clothed – a violent sanctuary.)

  So thanks for your brave contribution all these years later. Perhaps there will be other voices out there who might benefit from your frank and poignant recollection as a St. George’s “Old Boy.” There is a tremendous amount of dignity in your story and I’m grateful you took time to tell it.

  
  

• 6. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | October 30, 2007 at 12:12 pm

  Hello Anon
  Thank you for your brave and insightful comments - brave because I think it’s really hard to confront such painful memories. The experiences you describe are certainly familiar to me and although I never witnessed them I certainly spent many hours listening to them.

  One of the reasons that prompted me to do a net search was because in the last two years I have become reacquainted with a former assistant housemaster - one of the guys who came over from the UK to spend some time in St Georges - and it is in our many discussions that we have both come to realise that St George’s was a traumatising place for so many of us. It’s the first time for both of us to have someone else to talk to about common traumatic experiences and in some way, for me, has started some of my own coming to terms with that period in my life. My experiences can never be equated with yours by any means and I think it is a testimony to the human spirit that you and so many other people did indeed survive St George’s. That survival has indeed left its scars both literally and figuratively on many of us, housemasters’ children included, although our perspective can never be the same as those of the ‘boys’.

  I am glad that with maturity has come some perspective for you although I am indeed truly sad that you had such a traumatic time in a place that should have been a refuge for you and a time of trying to rebuild your family. Thank you for sharing your story with us

  
  

• 7. Anon | October 31, 2007 at 5:45 am

  Ah Wendy! When we met you were a very young girl with an awful metal contraption in (and on) your foot. You poor thing, I so silently sympathised with you! But you were so rightly proud and would have none of it. My apologies if I have revived any painful memories but mine of you were only delightful.

  I had just completed my National Service in the Air Force and with nowhere to stay. Father Richardson kindly allowed me to live in Simpson, assisting your father with the boys. Unfortunately, I was not much help and would eventually leave to start another career in the wider world.

  But thank you, Wendy, for your kind words and I am certain you are as beautiful now as when I first met you - may the sun never set on your happiness and may unhappiness be a mere speck you carelessly wipe from your eye.

  Blane, I shall respond to you in a separate email. You have been most kind to have written to me and I am currently constructing a reply.

  Allow me to say that I am delighted that neither of you has had the misfortune to see and do what I saw and did between the ages of 0 and 18. Very few days have passed, since I emerged from the gates of St Georges, wherein I did not entertain suicidal thoughts. But both of you are important witnesses that the brutality we boys encountered (and I must also admit, inflicted on those around us) was not imaginary.

  In conclusion though, we had everything too. Food, warmth, clothing, education and a roof to cover our heads. But it was impossible for me not to be a witness to a much greater misery. Had I but been black, mine would have many times worse. I thank God, from the bottom of my heart, that I was born white in apartheid South Africa.

  
  

• 8. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | November 1, 2007 at 6:26 pm

  Dear Anon
  Thank you for your kind words. I had and have had many contraptions on my feet as it was discovered that I actually have a muscular dystrophy. The pride/stubborness (depending on who you talk to) however remains :) as I want to live as full and normal a life as possible.
  It is only as an adult that I really got to grips with the extent of how much St George’s affected me and, with that, the insight of how much more it must have affected the boys who lived there.
  In my ideal world all of us who survived our different experiences of the home are able to find some peace and put the past to rest whilst never forgetting or denying what happened. If we can help each other to do that then that would be first prize for me.
  I am glad we have connected in this way and I wish you well.
  Regards
  Wendy

  
  

• 9. Michael Anthony Rossouw (1961-1967) | November 6, 2007 at 5:53 pm

  I happened to stumble on this site whilst doing some research for pictures of the Chapel windows of what is now the Bishop Bavin School.I am in much pain whilst reading the “blogg’ from the annonymous old boy who wrote about the canings, the bullying and the goings on that went on in a place that was supposed to be a caring environment.
  Yes ,I too had my share of canings, probably less than most because I kept my head down and played the game by the rules.
  I probably received more canings at Malvern High school than I did as a boy in the home! Nevertheless that does not justify the hurt and abuse experienced by the annonymous “old boy” and I’m suremany other old boys of the home, who received such treatment.I thank him for being as brutally honest in that which he wrote.
  I last attended an old boys day in 2000, just before I left to work in SE Asia. Whilst we all enjoyed seeing each other and chatting about the days when the home was “THE” Home, I was appalled as the afternoon went on and the tongues were loosened up after a good few cold castle lagers , to hear the horror stories about the behaviour of individual masters both of my era and beyond who seemed to take great dlight, if not relish ,in this kind of abusive behaviour. Small wonder the Home was closed to make way for te Bishop Bavin school.
  The number of “old Boys” (some of them in their 50’s and early 60’s now)who told horror stories, some of which were quite unbelievable given the names of the indivdual masters mentioned who committed these acts of abuse, was alarming to say the least. “How” , I asked myself “did I come out relatively unscathed?”
  “How was this allowed to happen? ” I asked myself.
  Did i miss something here?
  In retrospect I guess I was immune to what was going on. No master ever tried to have his way with me as i’m sure they would have known I’d have spilled the beans.Many of masters who were in charge of my house were good to me as mentors and as caring friends.
  Eric Richardson is a man for whom I have the highest regard. His efforts to bring the home into line with child care models of those similar to childrens homes in the UK in the 1960’s were way ahead of his time.There was much resitance to his claim in 1963 after his UK sabbatical , that St George’s ,as it was then run , was “a slum” and was no better than the workhouses of 19th Century Dickensian England.
  Many of us (and I was one of them) who do have some good memories of the Home were stunned at the manner in which the Home was “closed” , a better word would be “stolen” from us and replaced by the current Bishop Bavin School. But again, in hindsight,many boys left the home vowing never to darken its doors again and quite rightly so for obvious reasons.
  Again in hindsight, none of the old boys were aware of the changes that had taken place in the child care field and ,looking back, the closure of the Home as we knew it was probably long overdue. Did anyone really care? The closure of the home under Barry Lodge and his committee in the form that we knew it was probably long overdue , given that at the end of his tenure as “director” there were probably 30 or 40 boys left in the home which was built to accommodate near 200 odd boys. Alternative models were never discussed with the old boys and many probably didn’t care because we were left in the dark in the whole process of the home’s closure and the reasons for it..
  Anyhow, that’s history. Many institutions Like St Gerges did not survive the post apartheid era . I sometimes wonder though whether the St george’s in which I grew up would have made a viable alternative for the many street children and gangsters et al, roaming the streets of Johannesburg and other cities of our beautiful, but crime ridden country.We will never know.personally I’d rather have seen the work of StGeorge’s continue with our countries disadvantagd youth tatn it bing turned into a toffee-nosed snobbish playground for the neuvaue riche! Anyhow, that’s cruel to say such a thing , given the success the schoolhas made as a private school in the New South Africa.
  No institution can claim to be perfect. I guess the home as I knew just did the best they could with what they had.
  What then did the Home do for me?
  I received a good education, albeit that I only learned to read with understanding once I’d left school , as a boy in the home. People like Mrs Davis and Ma Van deemter at Wychwood guided me through my primary years with much care and affection.I had the privilege of learning the Queen’s English and an appreciation of English Literature from Vera Kirkland, Ep Cheyne and Peggy Morgan; a sense of how historians should be read and interpreted under Muriel Noaks and Miss Beveridge (Ma Be as we clled her); the rudiments of mathematics (not my bet subject) under Mrs Smith (Ma Frik as we used to call her) Mr Burgess , JJ de Jager and John Durie, and an appereciation of the World and my responsibility to do my part in looking after it (long before the concept of climate change and global warming were even mentioned )from Eugene Wright (Ma Braun) to name but a few of the many caring teachers I had the priviledge of knowing.
  Headmasters like Bob Morrison and John Edmund (Johnny)Johnsen,were ,for me ,en of outstanding educational ability and educators for whom I have the highest regard.
  (I have visited Wychwood Primary and Malvern High on my last vist to South Africa and I must say they reflect in many ways what the “New” South Africa , now in its adolescent years, is about.)
  I received the loving care of women like Betty Richardson, Audrey Mc Holm, the many “Sisters” who ran the surgery and looked after me in my many asthma attacks,and the many “Ma’s” who ran the kitchen and linen rooms.
  I learnt much from men like Kennedy James McHolm, Brian Gannon, George Adams that I could achieve in life what I wanted in terms of a career if i worked hard towards it.These were truly unique individuals who were “father figures ” to me and without whom I’d never ahve become te person I am today, even with my imperfections.
  I was inspired by old boys who had done good things with their lives that I too , like them could also be a “somebody” ; guys like Frederick (Nutsy ) Moore, Dr Tommy Geddes wo were great teachers, Fr Dale White, a priest in Canada, the late Bill Stewart ( not an old boy but a great teacher and product Malvern High school ) to name but a few, who, despite their backgrounds led meaningful lives in serving others.
  Above all , St George’s Home gave me a firm Faith in a loving God; not a ‘pie in the sky kind of God sporting a long white beard,but a Saviour who died for me and my miserable sin and the sin of the whole world. I thank God for His love for me every day.
  I have not been the success story many prdicted that I would be when I left the home.None of us are perfect and we make mistakes along the way. St George’s did little if anything to prepare me for the things like marrige and parenthood. I don’t blame the Home for that; I had a caring Mother but a father , who, whilst he cared, was not always the caring soul he could be when he was drunk and abusive to us and to my dear Mother..
  I am not making any apologies or trying to ‘white-wash ‘ what the annonymous old boy has written, but for me , St Georges home, with all its imperfections ,was the only home I knew.
  I am a school chaplain today teaching in the Philippines.
  Places like Burma , Mandalay, Rangoon, Malaysia , Singapore , Thailand and Indonesia were just names on a map in my history and geography class until I ventured out into these parts..
  I thank God every for God’s gift of life to me and for St George’s home and the chances that the home , with all its imperfections , gave to me, for without the Home and it influence on my life , I too would probably have been a crime statistic , imprisoned for life or dead.
  Eric Richardson ( now in his mid nineties and still as sharp as a razor) quoted the writer to the Hebrews in his address at the “closure” of the Home , saying, “We have no abiding city for us here on Earth, we are looking towards the city which is to come…’” Hebrews 13:14
  So I take the best of what the home gave to me as a boy and I try to forget the pain inflicted on me by certain individuals, masters and boys , who will remain nameless..
  Perhaps it’s the coward’s way out but its the only way I can deal with it.
  I gave up visiting the home (the Bishp Bavin Campus) in 2005 when my brothers and i asked if the home’s chapel could be made available to us to bury my brother., Des who ad died whilst I was visiting that year. We were politely told “We don’t do that if you are not members of the community.’
  I guess we are no longer part of what was the only home many of us knew.It is sad for me that when and if I am ordained a priest, i shall not be allowed to celebrate myfirst Eucharist at the altar at which I received my Christian faith. That is very sad but who knows, maybe there are some forgiving people in the capus which bears the name of one of the finest bishops I have ever know, +Timothy John Bavin
  ( now a monk in Alton Abbey in the UK) after whom the newBishop Bavin/ St George’s is named.
  God Bless you all.
  Yours sincerely
  Deacon Michael Rossouw
  Thanks for letting me saythese things. I hope I have not offended anyone in doing so. If I have , I ask your pardon and forgiveness.
  My work here involves visits to a locla orphanage run by an eveangelical church called the Phillipine outreach. I must say that when I look at the dorms, a little smaller than ours at SGH, I do get more than a tear in my eyes when I leave after visiting the kids, boys and girls who range from babies abandoned by their parents because of poverty and another mouth to feed and older kids who have been abused by parents and relatives. Looking back, I was one of the lucky ones and I have God, SGH and caring men like Eric Richardson and the late Ken mcHolm and many others to thank.

  
  

• 10. David Rossouw | November 7, 2007 at 4:41 pm

  Well,well,well…..Wendy Thompson. How the heck are you. Good to hear about you, albeit in response to anon’s letter of trauma experienced. I guess we all have war stories to tell.

  We went to varsity together, I recall taking you to some do on campus during your O-week. Incidentally, I thought you were very beautiful, but, being the village nerd, did not pluck up the courage to take ask you out.

  Blane van Pletzen, Crawford House, ja I remember your family and iIf I recall correctly, you were a blondie and had a cute sister and a very beautiful mom. Are they still alive???

  I’ll get back on another occasion w.r.t a full comment on the website. Ja, it was tough at “The Orphs” , but, the life lessons learnt wer invaluable.

  I’m Principal of a school in Randburg and was formerly a lecturer at Wits where I specialised in Teacher Training. My key mentors at St Georges were Mackie and The Beek (Richardson) who, despite many negatives at the home, were steadfast charachters.

  I’m at principal@ssb.za.net if anyone wants to catch up. Will give a better response to anon and share properly at a later date.

  Wendy, would love to make contact again. I had dealings with Geoff Bills (also passed on and his wife Jean) daughetr when she was secretary at my son’s Nursery school (He’s now 20). I think you guys were at school together.

  Mackie always used to preek on about us being future fathers and husbands - good ones - I took that message to heart.

  
  

• 11. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | November 7, 2007 at 9:34 pm

  Hello David
  It’s good to hear from you. Will email you at your address. Thanks for posting
  Regards
  Wendy

  
  

• 12. Linda Mac Millan (van Pletzen) | November 8, 2007 at 12:44 pm

  Good to hear the comments of all. I was very young when at St. Georges (8 -10)
  Blane and I visited there in June 2007 - it is now Bishop Bavins and many meories cam flooding back. There I learned to ride horses, smoke cigarettes, swear and to stand up for myself. I remeber many faces - names - Quintan Taljaard, Marcel, the Thompson twins - Ralph and Ronald. Carry On movies in the hall. The early morning bugle. That was many many years ago ……

  
  

• 13. david | November 23, 2007 at 3:03 am

  well now, a double edged sword, a home that had such good to it, yet had darkened halls and shadows, boys and masters alike. i was in simpson house and later at crawford, there i played hide and seek at the back of simpson, jumping off the store room roof onto old mattresses. built a fort and found a box of light photo sensitive paper and made shapes on it for hours on end, played soccer, rode horses, made candles, sang in the choir, participated in the swimming gala, diving competions and so forth, Ouch Mr Carr had the meanest cane around and we all agreed that he could at best give the worst canning ever, yet he was gentle, yet he was careing, did the most beautifull wood carvings and what i remember best about him was lights out, taking time to say good night to all the boys, saterdays we would sign out 50cents and if you were rich one rand from the book and running to the corner cafe for nickerballs, chips and coke. The school was strict i admit, heads inspection the worst, brushing window sills and panes with a tooth brush, ha ha coming from school and getting hot slap chips and a small carton of milk for lunch. but there was a darker side, older boys forcing there way onto younger boys for sex when the lights went out, let me leave it there………………….we all have stories good and bad, what i can say about it all is that i suppose i am better man from all of the experiences even tho scared by the bad ones,

  Edit Comment

• 14. Anon | November 24, 2007 at 9:22 am

  There once was a mine dump alongside the playing fields, just beyond the wild area that still exists today. The dump was quite substantial, about 30 metres high, comprising the soft yellow sand so typical of a gold mine dump. Of course it was out-of-bounds to the boys but that did not prevent us regularly playing there. We often jumped from its summit and the fine sand cushioned our falls. Rolling down the steep inclines was always a pleasure and countless hours of fun were dissipated aboard this relic of bygone days.

  Over the years and around its base, smaller piles of sand had accumulated as a result of wind action. Most of these were small but some were large enough to hind behind for whatever nefarious reasons that might spring into the minds of boys. It might be a wank, quickly and surreptitiously undertaken, the little dump acting as a curtain against prying eyes. Or it could be a leisurely crap, slowly and thoughtfully enjoyed. A dump behind a dump, so to speak.

  Joss and I were walking around the base of the major dump and passing through the maze of smaller ones when we heard a noise just beyond a pile of sand, too tall for us to see over. It was at the time of Guy Fawkes. Joss carried a whopper of a fire-cracker and we were looking for the best way to maximize the destructive power of the explosion we knew would ensue once the fuse was lit. The year was the mid early 60’s, about 1963 I would say, when Health and Safety still had decades before it would see the light of day. The firework we possessed was akin to a stick of dynamite with the potential to shift the entire mine dump across Joburg, several kilometers away. These were commonly sold to us across shop counters provided we had the dosh to pay for them.

  Joss and I looked at each other when we heard the noise. We detected the distinct sound of somebody straining whilst in the throes of a crap and we quickly climbed the small hill, the sound of our bare feet utterly silenced in the soft sand. Two pairs of eyes peered over the summit. There we beheld Walter, his shorts a small distance away, his back to us and beneath his naked rump, an accruing pile of soft brown dung. Joss and I looked at each other instantly reading the other’s thoughts. I quickly lit the cracker and Joss rolled it down the incline towards the unsuspecting Wally. Unbelievably, it nestled against the growing pile of brown stuff and still Wally was unaware. I could barely contain my mirth and I could see Joss turning purple as he also gulped down his laughter. We knew the ferocity of the beast we had released and knew too that when it exploded not much of Wally’s poo would be left. As likely as not we might be covered in it so we ducked our heads and waited for what seemed an eternity.

  BOOM!! We looked at each other thinking we had killed Walter because not a sound could be heard from the other side. Slowly we looked over the summit and this time Walter was standing fully erect, his face purple with rage. “You f___ b___s!!” was all he could say. Not one scrap of his efforts remained. It was if a shovel had collected it and flung it to the winds as a fine spray. Other than a dent in his dignity and a really red bum (which was clearly evident to both Joss and me), Walter suffered no other injuries.

  Joss and I lay on our backs in the soft sand and laughed so much we could hardly breathe, tears running down our cheeks. My very best mate, Joss, laughing with me in the sand.
  A few years later, around 1966, two non-St Georges boys were playing on the dump. They were running along the top and jumping off the steepest edge, landing safely in the fine sand below. Just as we did. Suddenly the pinnacle collapsed and covered their bodies. They were both suffocated. Later, rumours circulated that the distraught mother had desperately tried to replace her missing sons by asking Father Richardson if she could adopt two boys from the Home.

  Before then, the dump was out-of-bounds. Now it was strictly out-of-bounds. We needed no further warning and only foolhardy boys risked playing on the dump. Later it was covered with a top-cover soil, grass planted and a reservoir of sorts built into it. I see today that it has been completely removed. Methinks the gold content, locked within the fine yellow sand, was the reason why.

  
  

• 15. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | December 4, 2007 at 4:46 pm

  Hi anon
  You have a lovely turn of phrase. I can just picture the scene. I remember the dump and the rather overgrown area in that region - below the Old Boys’ field as it was known.

  
  

• 16. john rossouw | December 7, 2007 at 6:44 pm

  I am in the process of photographing all the archives of St Georges home and editing the book on it’s history written by George Adams If anyone is interested they can contact me on johnros@iafrica.com
  I echo the sentiments of my brothers above that the home was a good place despite everything and I certainly reflect through the archives what a unique and special meaning it has in my life

  
  

• 17. Blane | December 7, 2007 at 11:17 pm

  Hello John:

  This is good news. When I was last at St. Georges this last Summer, I had asked after memorabilia and history. No one at Bishop Bavins seemed to know of any such thing. One lady remembered that there had been a room devoted to St. George’s history but thought that it had been packed up and moved.

  Where are the archives? Can you share a little more of what you are finding there?

  I am so interested in what you are finding.

  Thanks for doing this.

  
  

• 18. david | December 11, 2007 at 1:04 am

  i was in st georges from 1980 to 1989. started off in beaton house and ended up in smuts house,
  many fond memories

  
  

• 19. john rossouw | December 11, 2007 at 5:01 pm

  Greetings Blane
  You may recall you, your sister and I were close friends during your stay at the home
  The closure of St Georges in 91 to make way for Bishop Bavin school was at the time a highly contentious issue which is well documented in George Adam’s book
  All memorabila was moved into a museum (the old boat shed between Taylor House and the workshop)
  Barry Lodge headmaster at the time was so enraged with the old boys that he threw all memorabia onto the rubbish dump
  Fortunately someone retrieved most of it and I have been able to potpgraph all the trophies and photographs that remain but a great deal has unfortunately been lost
  The relationship between the home and the school remains delicate but we have managed to find place in the chapel for a great number of items and are progressing well in getting other items placed in appropriate places throughout the school
  The task is ardeous and time consuming but I am targeting to complete same early in the new year with completion of the book by St Georges day in April
  The old boys field below the soccor field made way for a retirement village in 88 which today helps to fund what remains of the home from proceeds of residential unit sales and I serve on the board of directors of the village as my contribution to the ongoing work of St Georges
  If you let me have an email address I will forward you some photos for your website

  Regards

  John

  
  

• 20. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | December 12, 2007 at 1:28 am

  Hi John
  Thanks for sharing that info. There is so much history vested in those records - and so much of people’s lives - that it’s good to know that you have been able to work on preserving what is left. I look forward to the completion of the book in the new year.
  Regards
  Wendy

  
  

• 21. john rossouw | December 14, 2007 at 1:17 pm

  Greetings Wendy

  Please give my best regards to both Steve and Nick assuming they remember me (Nick if I recall was in the choir wth us)
  I am also keen to receive any contact details for Norman Clayton in the UK as I wrote to him last year but did not get any reply
  Dave tells me you married our old school friend Kevin Jones so it is a small world after all
  R your folks still alive and if so what are they doing
  Also how is your sister
  I seem to recall she was a teacher when we knew her at the home
  I visited with Eric Richardson last night to avoid sitting in traffic on the way home and we shared a drink and a chat for an hour or so (who would have thought as a boy of 8 that I would one day do that)
  Afterwards I washed the glasses and jokingly asked him if I had passed inspection
  He is in excellent spirits despite his age of 95 but his eyesight and hearing are deteriorating
  His state of mind and memory are however excellent and I printed a special copy of the book in large font for him to proof read which I refer to as “his homework” and use my visists as a means of checking to see if he is doing his “prep”
  Whilst it is taking time he is relishing in the task and has aded some vital insight and annecdotes to the project
  His daughter Deborah is comming out from NZ in December and their whole family will be together for Christmas
  He also gave me the contact details for David Laughton who was a one time housemaster of the home in the 60’s and 70’s
  on a relief basis flitting between Simpson, Beaton. Taylor, Smuts and Crawford houses
  We used to always refer to him as Tubby as he was rather plump
  Nevertheless he was an excellent football coach and despite his portlyness could move around a football field with the best of players the home could muster at the time
  I phoned Dave last night but he does not seem to remember much but I have promissed to meet with him when my brother Mike visits in December from the Phillipines
  He did however remember my late brother Des as well as our mom and was very sad in hearing of their passing
  I have had an email from Linda and will make an effort to meet with her in the new year
  In the meantime my best wishes to all of you for a peacefull Christmas and new year

  Regards

  John

  Regards

  j

  
  

• 22. Wendy Thompson | December 14, 2007 at 5:44 pm

  Hi John
  It is indeed a small world. I will pass your regards on to Steve. He is in touch with Nick.

  For ‘my sins’ my folks work for Kevin and I. We run a trading company and my dad takes his job very seriously as he supervises the loading of the trucks for us. My mom just sits in the office, types the odd letter and answers the phone. To use Kevin’s words - she sounds like Red Riding Hood’s granny - but it keeps her busy. Thanks for sharing about Eric Richardson. It’s good to know that he is still going strong. his son, Michael, is a doctor in Hillcrest which is very close to where we live and it is just like looking at a younger version of his father! amazing.

  I still find it incredible that all the people you guys mention are so familiar. I have also made contact with Linda and hope to see her when she comes to visit family in Durban. Kevin and I, although it is more often Kevin than me, do come to Joburg and so, if that happens before David comes down to Comrades I would like to try and make a plan to see him. It ilil be good to catch up.

  Thank you for your good wishes. May you have a peaceful Christmas and new year as well.

  Regards
  Wendy

  
  

• 23. Len Deacon | December 28, 2007 at 10:04 pm

  I have just been looking through some of the comments in some of postings in this web log. Boy does it bring back memories.I was at the home during the 1970’s when many of the people you talk about run the show. like Father Richardson and Clayton and Mr Ken McHolm, men who were very focussed on what was right. I have learnt many a hard lesson from them. It has been a long time since then.

  Well take care.
  God bless you
  Len.

  
  

• 24. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | January 3, 2008 at 11:41 pm

  Hi Everyone
  Hope that you all had a good festive season and that 2008 will be a good year for all of us.
  Regards
  Wendy

  
  

• 25. GAVIN SCHAFER | January 13, 2008 at 12:49 am

  It would be great to hear from all the old home boys , we remember all the good times and the bad ( i suppose) BUT IT TAUGHT US THE VALUES OF LIFE. I AM VERY PROUD TO BE AN EX HOME BOY,THIS INCLUDES ALL MY BROTHERS; GARRY, DONALD, NOEL, WAYNE (who has passed away) we spent a long time in the home from 1970 to 1978, the housework and prep, well what can i say? CALL ME. hey LENARD DEACON AND WENDY THOMPSON!!!!! THESE NAMES BRING BACK MEMORIES . I wonder how ” HERBIE” is doing? my mom YVONNE SCHAFER remembers him well, and so do we.I did my last years years as headboy of smuts house and drum major of the band, taking over and tought by JOHN ROUSSOUW. my patrol leader in dorm 3 in smuts house was DAVID ROUSSOW and my geography teacher at Malvern high was of course MICHEAL ROUSSOUW.I have told you who i am now all you HOME BOYS give me a call !!

  
  

• 26. Wendy Thompson | January 13, 2008 at 8:13 pm

  Hello Gavin
  Great to hear from you - although I am not one of the ‘boys’.
  Regards
  Wendy

  
  

• 27. john rossouw | January 17, 2008 at 3:49 pm

  Hi Gavin / Len

  Good to hear from you both

  Please pass my regards to you brothers and mom
  I last saw Gary in the late 90’s when he called on my old company as a rep
  Len I assume it’s you who is involved with Bankmed as I often see documnentation with your name and phot when I consult at Absa

  Regards

  John

  
  

• 28. Blane | January 18, 2008 at 1:14 am

  Just had word from Wendy that Fthr. Norman Clayton has passed away. Any information about his life — and death — would be most welcome.

  
  

• 29. john rossouw | January 18, 2008 at 5:55 pm

  Hi Blane this is indeed sad news as the only surviving core member of the home is now Fr Richardson
  Michael was out for Christmas and he Dave and I attended the baptism of Fr Richardson’s geat grandaughter which he officiated
  It was a special service for us as his entire family was present from all over the world including his daughter Deborah from New Zealand and her husband, son and daughter
  His son Michael was ever the proud grandfather and we recalled many fond memories of our lives togetehr at the home in our short time toggether
  As regards Fr Clayton he arrived at the home shortly after Fr Richardson in the early sixties bringng with him a staunch entrenchment of Anglican faith and tradition
  My memories of him are that he was an outright perfectionst
  Choir practice always used to run late and the Saturday evening film had to be held up until he was satisfied that we were up to scratch for the next day’s service
  He even used to force us to have hymn paractice on Friday evenings to ensure the standard of hymn singing was worthy of the worship he sought to instill in us
  Despite his traditional ways he was very modern in his enjoyment of popular music of the day and he soon acquired the nick name of Bee Bop which stuck with him throughut his years at the home
  He drove a mercedes benz motor car which was always immaculately maintained and he lived in the flat above the bell tower
  Fr Clayton was also a keen caravanist and he toured many parts of the country with a number of boys
  His tenure at the home brought a multitude of experiences and opportunities previously not available to the boys and in the late sixties we were able to listen to Radio St George, a closed network he set up which tranmitted radio and music programmes throughout all the houses. He was very involved with hi fi technical developments having had a background as a radio controller in the war and he was constantly asked to test the latest audio equipment on the market for which he wrote reviews for prominent global publications
  His landmarks at the home were many and those which come to mind are
  The choir
  The renovation of the chapel
  Radio St George where many of the boys were taught recording and broadcasting skills by him
  The Communicants - a religious pop group comprising my brothers Michael and Desmond and Tom Stevens (a volunteer from the UK much the same as Steve Towse and Nick Young) - later joined by Dennis Randall
  They wrote their own passion play for easter and a nativity play for Christmas which they performed at numerous churches around the country
  Bee Bop also managed to use his then influence with the SABC to have them play on the English service radio but the fuddie duddies at the time felt that pop music had no place in the traditional church and their recordings were bannned (Thank goodness the world has progressed since then)
  Photogrophy - the work of the boys at the home received both local and international acclaim and whilst sorting through the archives of the home I came across the David van der Berg photo etitled “Our Father ” which won a top international salon award
  Other prominent photogrophers were his brother Raymond and Craig Cooper amongst others
  Other interests which he initiated were radio drama and music appreciation where we all lay around in his flat on Sunday evenings listening to classical music
  Another landmark was an award winning short film entitled “The Cuckoo’s Nest which was a story about St Georges Home and the work it was doing in the community which was released in 1969
  Under his influence the home choir was the first to appear on SABC television and I achieved instant celebrity status amongst my friends at school when they saw me on the tube in 1975 and 76
  His sister Laura was also a strong supporter of the home and it’s boys and I remeber being spoilt on many occasion by her
  together with my co choristers in the choir
  On leaving the home in 1977 to take up a PR position the Anglacan church in the UK he was awarded the Honours Tie and I received his address in 2005 from a letter of condolence he wrote to Ken Mc Holm and the family following the death of Ken’s wife Audrey

  I wrote to him sortly thereafter as I was anxious to share with him news of my family and to ask him if he still had coppies of the recordings of the Communicatns as I was looking for one as a momento following the death of our brother Desmond
  I never heard from him so I am not sure if he received the letter

  Those of us who knew him will have our own memories
  He was never considered to be an easy person but his work at the home was very special and unique and in his own way he certainly made a life long lasting impression on the character of myself and my brothers as well as many other boys

  His passing closes yet another chapter of the unique story which is St Georges and on behalf of my brothers I extend our sincere and deepest condolences to his family and friends
  May he rest in peace

  
  

• 30. Blane | January 18, 2008 at 11:15 pm

  Thank you, John, for this rich memory of Fr. Clayton. What a remarkable man, and what an impact on your life.

  
  

• 31. Brian Gannon | January 19, 2008 at 10:54 am

  This week I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Canon Eric Richardson who was brought on a short holiday to Cape Town by his daughter Debbie who was visiting South Africa from New Zealand. Eric recently turned 95 years old, so it was a pleasant surprise to find him looking and sounding the same as ever. We communicate by e-mail, but I haven’t been to Johannesburg for more then thirty years so I hadn’t seen him for all that time.

  All who knew him will be pleased to hear that he is living very much in the present tense! We talked about our families, books we were reading, politics … the usual conversation topics. Then we discussed some issues around the church in the modern context and he was both animated and up-to-date in his views.

  It was a great visit. We “go back a long way” and next year it will be fifty years since he invited me to work with him at St George’s Home.

  Warm greetings to all St George’s people who visit this this blog.
  BG

  
  

• 32. john rossouw | January 21, 2008 at 7:35 pm

  Greetings Brian

  You may have heard from Fr Eric that I am involved in editing George Adam’s book on the history of the home
  Also together with my brother David I am photographing all the remaining archives of the home (You would be interested to know there exists a copy of the staff photo from the 60’s which has you in it)
  Fr Eric suggested I contact you once the exercise is complete
  to talk about it’s publcation but alas their will be a limited readership who would be interested but at least their will be some archive evidence of the home’s existence and the outstanding work done by so many incredible people over the years
  You may recall our RSCM choir school in 1976 held at the home under your direction and I have only just realised that I am in the 1970 photograph of the choir taken by Fr Clayton (3 rd in back row)
  My brother Michael visited over Christmas from the Phillipines and you will be pleased to hear he is relatively well
  I understand that he is in touch with you from time to time via email
  I am also involved with St Georges Village on the board which is built below the football fields and one of my fellow directors is David Butcher with whom you were invloved in setting up St Nicholas Home together with Derick James
  Plz can you let me have your contact details so that I can keep in touch
  You can send same to me at johnros@iafrica.com

  Regards

  John

  
  

• 33. Michael Anthony Rossouw (1961-1967) | January 22, 2008 at 12:41 pm

  Dear Friends
  Can anyone from the UK find the obituary for Fr Norman James Clayton AKC.
  I am anxious to contact his sister/s (Laura?) assuming she is still alive.

  Norman always said she was an example of a living “saint” (indeed she was, having to put up with the many demnds he and others made on her time and expertise.)

  Laura was the secretary to the late Dean of Jhb, the very rev’d Gonville Aubey fFench- Beytach, CR who was deported from South Africa after a sham of a treason trial in the 1970’s!

  As my brother John has said in his “blogg” on Bee Bop’s work and ministry in the Home , Norman was not sombody everyone could get along with.

  He, NJC, also ministered in the UK and in Rhodesia , now Zimbabwe , prior to working as the first chaplain to St George’s…( I wonder what NJC would have felt about Mugabe’s mismanagement of Zimbabwe ! Talk about Zimbabwe ruins, Mugabe has managed to absolutely and totally wreck what was once beautiful and thriving country, the jewel of Africa as it was called prior to its independence!)
  Yes the Bush War and t sanctions had taken its tool on everyone, citizen and “freedom fighter alike, but boy he has really mnaged to mess up the country completely. where else in the world does one find a 25 000 00 0 dollar bill?

  I was able to agree to disagree with Norman on many subjects on many an occassion; Art, film , music and even Theology and doctrine . At one particular time we disagreed on something in one of our discussions, which resulted in my being “gated” one going out Sunday (in my Matric year nogal!)
  I was made to read C.S Lewis’s “Screwtape Letters”. This was one punishment which I actually enjoyed as I learnt a lot about this Oxford Don’s incredible spirituality.

  Norman (and Eric Richardson) prepared me for Confirmation in Dec 1962. EHR completed the very thorough course Norman designed , as Bee Bop was in hospital for a major stomach op.at the time in th old Jhb Gen Hospital… I remember visiting him there then; many thought he would not recover from such an ordeal but BeeBop DID recover remarkably and went on to serve the home as its chaplain for another 12 years or so after that ordeal.

  Please , if anyone cn help m e to write to hi s surviving family , I’d appreciate it.

  I was shocked to hear of his death . My brothers and I have been trying to get hold of him, particularly t o get copies of the taped music Tom Stephens and I wrote as members of the group “The Communicants” in 1966 and ‘67.

  Knowing the circumstances and cause of his death will give me ( and I’m sure many others who knew him) a sense of “closure’ on his life and what he meant to many of us who knew him.

  His life was one of boundless energy and he was a real perfectionist.

  Not many who knew him understod him ,but his influnce on my life has been substantial to say the least, especially in my growth in the Faith.

  I pray that he will Rest in Peace.

  Blessings to you all from the Philippines.

  Dn Michael Rossouw
  (Brent International School, Subic Bay Campus, Philippines)

  PS Speaking of hospitals…anyone remember the Army medicals at the old Drill hall?…

  “Hoes?” (Cough) said the Army Doctor
  ‘Mine’ I replied
  ” You trying to be funny , hey!” he retorted
  “No Doc” i said sheepishly in my nakedness amongst the other 10 000 or so recruits in that dreaded place.
  “Does it hurt?”said the Doc
  “No ! Only when I laugh! ” I replied.

  Needless to say the Army Medico, like Queen Victoria , was not amused.

  Pronounced “fit for duty” I spent the next 10 years doing weekend camps and call up duties in the old Commandos. No wonder I stayed in the Band! At least there I didn’t have to kill anyone! But that’s another story for another day.

  
  

• 34. Michael Anthony Rossouw (1961-1967) | January 22, 2008 at 1:07 pm

  Sorry Blane,
  I know the picture taken in 1971.
  I’d left the home by then but I think my brother John is the guy third from the left in the back row on the “cantoris’”side of the chancel.
  Perhaps John knows the guys. Some may not have been choirboys at the time as many were chosen for their “cherubic” faces when pics were taken.
  All in the name of PR and much fund-raising at the time !
  I recognise some faces but am unable to put names to them. The one taken in the 1960’s would be one i could help you with. I’l try to trace it in my memorabilia.
  Will try to upload a picture for yu soon
  Michael

  
  

• 35. john rossouw | January 22, 2008 at 5:53 pm

  Looking at the photo the names escape me almost entirely although I suspect the 1 st person in the back row is William Wilson and the last person is Richard Rheeder but I may be mistaken

  Regards

  John

  
  

• 36. GAVIN SCHAFER | January 26, 2008 at 7:57 pm

  NO WONDER I HAVE NOT RECEIVED MAIL? I THINK I GAVE THE WRONG EMAIL ADDRESS. THE ABOVE ONE IS CORRECT. THANKX ONE AND ALL. gavinsc@cmh.coza

  
  

• 37. Michael Rossouw | February 2, 2008 at 7:42 pm

  ANYONE HAVE ANY NEWS ON FR NORMAN CLAYTON?
  I THOUGHT THAT IT’S ONLY IN TV SERIES LIKE “DALLAS” (now I’m really dating myself!) WHERE THE DEAD COME TO LIFE.
  PLEASE LETS HEAR WHAT THE SITUATION IS. I HAVE BEEN GRIEVING HIS PASSING FOR THREE WEEKS NOW ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT NJC IS ALIVE AND WELL!!
  SORRY FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE CAUSED BUT THE NEWS I GOT ON MY LAST VISIT TO THE OLD COUNTRY WAS THAT HE HAD INDEED PASSED ON.
  Keep in touch

  Michael Rossouw

  
  

• 38. John O'Neill | February 2, 2008 at 10:03 pm

  Sorry for not posting this information a bit earlier, but I have had a pretty busy weekend. On Thursday evening I had an hour long phone conversation with Norman Clayton. He is still alive and living in a seaside town on the Yorkshire coast. For a man of his age, he is now 84, he is lucid and although his memory isn’t quite as sharp as he would like it, he did recognise many names who have posted on Blanes’ blog. He asked me about other people, who I can barely remember myself, as I was last in St.G’s in 1974. I wasn’t into photography, choir or classical music, so I was quite amazed that he actually knew who I was!

  Hopefully, if I can re-arrange some of my plans for February, I will go and see him. He stays about 200 miles from me. John Rossouw, he still has the music you are looking for. He did get the letter you wrote to him, but he said he finds writing a chore now. He also has a lot of photos which I think you would be interested in. When I go to see him, I will try to get copies of the photos and see if I can get the music you want copied from reel to reel tapes onto CD.

  It did take me a bit of time to track Norman down, but I think it has been worth the effort. Not only was it worth the effort, but he was delighted that so many people were thinking of him. I stumbled across Blanes’ blog totally by accident and have enjoyed reading the posts. I doubt very much if I would have posted on the blog, if it hadn’t been for Michael looking for a copy of Fr Claytons obituary!

  I have sent Blane a copy of a photo from the early ’70’s. It is the St.Georges u/14b team. I’ll ask him to post it and we’ll see how many names we can come up with. I know about 7, but can’t remember the rest.

  On the Christmas Greetings photo of the choir, I think the person second from left in the back row is Craig Cooper, but it’s just a guess.

  If anyone would like to email me, or ask any questions I can be contacted at sgh198@ntlworld.com

  I was in Crawford House and my two housemasters were, George van Pletzen and Dave ‘Tubby’ Laughton.

  John

  
  

• 39. Blane | February 2, 2008 at 11:04 pm

  Thank you, John for taking such extraordinary effort to find and “resurrect” Fr. Norman Clayton. Many have been praying for the repose of his soul these last three weeks! Look forward to hearing more of your story and memories of that grand and sometimes fearful place we call “Saint George’s Home for Boys.”

  
  

• 40. Wayne De Jager | February 2, 2008 at 11:54 pm

  My father and his siblings attended St. Georges in the late 50’s and early 60’s. Two of them, Albert and Fred did stints as house masters (I think Gerald also was a house master for a year). I’m not sure how long Albert was house master at Tailor House, but I remember him being there for many years. Fred was house master of Simpson House for about two years. I lived with him at the time, and so I spent two years at St. Georges myself. I sang in the choir (occasionally appearing on TV, and also recording the Rhodesian National Anthem at EMI records as the lead soprano). I also played soccer for the under 14’s and under 16’s. This was in the late 70’s. I attended Jeppe Boys High at the time.

  The five De Jager (Dave, Lesley, Gerald, Albert, Fred, and Desmond (who was killed in motorcycle accident when he was 21)) brothers all passed through the home, and are now in their late 50’s and early 60’s. They all built wonderful families, (I have 16 cousins), and have had successful lives. I believe they all have positive memories of the Home, and I wonder if they would have turned out that well if it weren’t for the home. Although my grandmother hated leaving her boys there, the Home helped our family significantly. It still amazes me how these brothers all turned out so well. Albert got married to Patricia at the St. Georges chapel, and our family photographs are scattered with many photographs taken over the years at St. Georges.

  Another family who passed through the Home are the Crawford brothers (Howard, Ian, Andrew (now deceased), whom Uncle Fred and I still remain friends with. A bunch of tall blokes, those guys are!

  I fondly remember trips to Port Shepstone for the holidays, all my friends at Simpson house (Peter, Trevor), the romping and mischief we used to get up to.

  
  

• 41. Michael Rossouw | February 3, 2008 at 6:53 am

  Dear Wayne
  Great to here your news.
  The DeJager family, like the Rossouws, Joneses, Grisselles, Wentworths , Bloomfields, Schaeffers, and many many more also come to mind as you write.They all left their mark on the Home in one way or another.
  I’d like to hook up with Albert and Patrica…Pat and I wrote matric the same year 1967. She was at the old Belgravia Convent which became the Belgravia commercial high school and I was at Malvern. Albert was then trying to “court” Pat as she was quite beautiful. Needless to say, Bert Gibson, my housemaster at Taylor house and a man who in his simple caring way was a good fatherly figure to us, kept his daughters sheltered from the the boys of the home.(As any watchful father would do!)
  I remember too Mrs Gibson . She and I worked together at the Cahmber of Mines many years ago. She may well have passed on… a lovely woman who shared her husband’s work and had a very soft spot for many of us little urchins.
  Bert’s ashes are laid to rest in the Garden of remembrance at the chapel crypt near the Haggert Building, next to be the Choir vestry and the bandroom, a place where I spent much time in my time at StGeorges.
  Albert was senior student officer and home prefect. He gave many good years of service back to the home as a master in Taylor house, although he was an old boy of Spackman House
  He made a career in retailing I believe after leaving SGH as a master and we lost touch. He was also an NCO in the Grahamstown Rifles.
  Uncle Freddy and I were in the band as tenor and bass drummers… he may have been a buglar but I cant remember. Uncle Gerald was a bugler who often played all the bugle calls which ruled our lives in the home calling us to meals, waking us uo in the morning, last post and retreat at camp….etc
  It would be good to catch uo with Pat and Albert. Please give them my fondest regards.
  I am a school chaplain now very far from home in the Philippines..
  Thanks for checking in…isn’t the net a wonderful tool to use…
  I wonder how we managed when we used to write letters and wait for months to hear anything from anyone…
  Blessings to you all
  Deacon Michael Rossouw(SGH 1961-1967)

  
  

• 42. john rossouw | February 3, 2008 at 3:57 pm

  Greetings Tich and Wayne and all other Home Boys and girls and online travellers
  It is indeed great news to hear Bee Bop is still allive and well and that he recalls much of his life at the home
  John when you visit with him please pass on my regards and best wishes
  Please convey to him also our appreciation for all he did for us as boys in the home
  Fr Clayton took many photographs of the boys whilst at the home and he was meticulous in detailing names on the back etc so John if you are able to get some from him it would be great as I am trying to put together a pictorial history of the home from all the archive photo’s I have managed to wade through
  Also if you are able to get a copy of the Communicants music it would be a wonderful gift to share amongst those interested in listening to it
  In particular the passion play and nativity play were incredible pieces of work
  some words of one of my personal favourites goes
  “I love crazy music
  and I love rock n dance
  I love going out with dolls
  and I love holding hands
  I also love my God with me
  It may seem odd to you
  Yes God can join in all our fun
  Yes girls and dancing too

  Every time you look at us
  You’l probably thing were odd
  But nevertheless I tell you
  That we are the sons of God etc”

  Yes Wayne I remeber both Freddie and Albert very well
  Albert and Patricia were my houseparents in Taylor House and I remember baby sitting your couzins Rickie and Tracie as toddlers
  I seem to recall your mom’s name was Ethnie or Enid and her her family had a connection with Johannesburg childrens home in Observatory
  I also remeber the death of your uncle in 72 and Albert had a photo of him walking his dog (a black labrador) on the beach in Cape Town hanging in his office
  Freddie’s cell number was on my brothers phone and I tried to call him when Dessy died but the number was unfortunately no longer valid so please let him know of Dessy’s passing in 2005
  One of the photo’s which they will all be interested is the swimming team of Spackman House in the mid sixties which has most the brothers in it
  They were all incredible swimmers and Albert trained me to win all my breastroke races at the home in 75 and 76
  Freddie also won the Victor Ludorum a number of times and I have photographed all the names on the trophy over the years
  He was also an incredible backstroke swimmer and I stand to be corrected but a number of his records were still standing when the home closed
  Anyway it’s great to have this online community and I would encourage as many boys and girls as possible who have the technology and know how to use it to share their stories and memories

  Regards and blessings to you all

  John

  
  

• 43. Len Deacon | February 3, 2008 at 10:10 pm

  Hi Gavin, John, Wendy and other friends.
  It is so interesting to read all the blogs. John by the way yes I am the same Leonard that is employed at Bankmed. Small world when you really think about it.
  Does any one have Father Richardson,s address in Cape Town. i Would love to visit him. I too live in the Cape. He meant a lot to me when I was really confussed about life and why I was at St Georges. If this information is confidential here is my e-mail len.deacon@worldonline.co.za.
  well God bless you all.
  Len.

  
  

• 44. john rossouw | February 4, 2008 at 3:39 pm

  Gretings Len

  Father Richardson lives in Joburg in Braynston village Homestead Ave diagonally opposite Sandton Medi Clinic (unit 48)
  His number is listed in the directory but you need to keep calling as even at 95 he is still very active in his ministry in the village and the wider Bryanston Anglican community
  My approach is to pop in late afternoon / earrly evening to avoid the traffic and we sometimes have a drink together whilst we chat (he still enjoys a good glass of brandy)
  I am sure he would be very glad to hear from any old boys as he always relishes my all too infrequent visits
  His daughter emigrated to New Zealand a few years back (previously ex Cape Town) and the Cape reference is to her taking him on holiday there on the family’s recent visit to SA
  If you ever happen to be at a meeting at the hospitl in your line of work then perhaps you could look him up
  Incidientally Len, my brother in law is Dr Stefaan Bouwer from the ENT society and in addition to his medical practice he has extensive deallings with the medical aid industry in terms of tarrif negotiations etc so you may well have come across him

  Blane please let me know what I need to do to upload photo’s to the blog

  Whilst I have hundreds and am still to complete the archive exercise at the end of Feb I will be selective in terms of only posting ones relative to correspondents on the site

  Regards

  John

  
  

• 45. Steve Towse | February 5, 2008 at 1:48 am

  Hello!
  I was PT volunteer- already mentioned above.1976-1978, initially with Bob Richardson in Beaton then with Herbie Thompson in Simpson.
  Fr clayton is alive and well and living in a retirement home here in Uk. I am writing to him today, having only got his address myself yesterday.
  Please feel free to contact me

  steve.to@hotmail.co.uk

  
  

• 46. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | February 5, 2008 at 2:06 am

  Hi Steve
  You need to leave your address :). Thanks for writing in. Do you think you could remember what year the pics were taken? It would be interesting to see if anyone recognises any of the faces.
  Thanks
  Wendy

  
  

• 47. Wendy Jones (Thompson) | February 5, 2008 at 2:09 am

  Hi everyone
  Thanks for posting all your news. It’s really good to hear what everyone has been up to.
  Regards
  Wendy

  
  

• 48. john rossouw | February 5, 2008 at 5:44 pm

  Hi Wendy / Steve

  I suspect the photo’s were taken in 1975/6 which was my last year at the home as I recognise some of the faces (unfortunately not any names)
  Strange to see a youthfull looking Peter Nicholls and Joan Harpur in the Spackman house photo and Bob (dekkie) Richardson(we used to call him that as he was like a detective always spying on us to see what we were up to)
  I last saw Peter at Ken Mc Holm’s memorial service in 2006 but he used to play the organ at Christ Church Mayfair where my mother worshiped so she did see him on a regualr basis
  Joan came out when her sister Audrey Mc Holm passed away in 2005 and she was fortunate enough to spend time with Audrey whilst she was still lucid which was a very special time for her
  When we chatted at the “Old Boy’s” 75th anniversary luncheon she still joked about the meagre pension she still receives from the home for all her years work there
  By way of trivia Ken met Audrey at Joan’s wedding as at the time Joan’s late husband was a housemaster at the home as were Ken’s parents
  They fell in love and she joined him in his work dedicating her liife towards the caring work of loking after the boys
  Ken in fact was studying medicine at Wits at the time and he gave up being a doctor in preference to a true calling inchild care
  Joan’s son Robert was also the first baby to be born at St Georges so it should be no surprise why the family have such an affinity to towards the home and why she returned in the seventies to take up a role as housemother in Spackman house
  Great to have your email address Steve
  I will try and drop you a line soon as it would be great to catch up for a chat much the same as we used to do all those years ago

  Regards

  John

  
  

• 49. john rossouw | February 5, 2008 at 5:53 pm

  Having had another look at the U 14 football photo I seem to think the goalkeeper in the middle of the back row is Sydney Burrow
  By way of update Gary Hand emigrated to Australia in 1974 to reunite with his mother and Tony Girout is a plumber by profession but currently is a pastor running a chuch in the Southen Suburbds last I heard

  
  

• 50. Steve Towse | February 6, 2008 at 2:12 am

  Just checking the photographs,Umtentwini photo’s were in mid 1977, Heather and the Simpson House boys(who had nowhere to go on a Sunday!)was taken in early 1978.

  Dear Wayne,
  I was in Simpson when Freddie became housemaster. He was a very kind man and I have positive memories of him.
  About twenty years ago,here in Chesterfield UK, I met a SA man called Luke Olivier who was an ex home boy, we met via our children both attending the same pre-school centre. Anyway when we were looking at some of my photographs of St George’s he suddenly exclaimed that he recognised Albert for some reason,had a think and then said,O Yes he married my sister Pat!!.
  I don’t have contact for Luke now but could try and locate him. Pllease pass on my regards to Albert and Freddie, it would be good to hear from them,
  steve.

  
  

• 51. Michael Rossouw | February 17, 2008 at 8:29 am

  Dear Friends
  ‘Just to let you all know that I chatted to Fr Norman last week. He is indeed very much alive and we spoke for about an hour.
  He kind of implied that he is a bit of a loner and that he no longer has any surviving relatives. I assured him that he had many…in the form of the many boys who knew him as their spiritual father and caring friend.
  I’ve not spoken to or seen Fr Norman since he left South Africa so it was good to hear him.
  I shall be attending the Episcopal Church in the Philippines Convention (Synod) in Manila next week . it wiil be interesting to see what the mind of the church is at this time, particularly with all the devisive issiues facing the Worldwide Anglican Communion right now.
  I guess we all have to be faithful to God wherever we are and listen to that “still small voice…”
  One of NJC’s favorite hymns is:
  “God is working His purpose out as year succeeds to year. God is working His purpose out ane the time is drawing near. Nearer and nearer draws the time, the time that shall surely be
  When the Earth shall be filled with the Glory of God as the waters cover the sea…”(Hymns A&M 271)
  In all of life’s trails we need to remember that God is in control.
  It was really great to hear Beebop speak, as eloquently and as sharp as ever.
  I asked him if he still says a daily mass..he says he does but not every day. ” in a home for retired clergy, the eldest of which is an archdeacon of 101, he says there are many of us and I leave it to the younger ones.
  I for one am very thankful for his witness and influence on my life and spiritual growth.

  Blessings to you all

  Deacon Michael Rossouw, Subic bay,Philippines.

  
  

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